Access to Justice
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September 25, 2024
Federal Court expands RCMP class action to include affected family members
The Federal Court has expanded a class action against the RCMP to include family members of RCMP members and reservists allegedly subjected to systemic bullying, intimidation and harassment.
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September 25, 2024
Class action seeks compensation for alleged abuse of Indigenous students at Alberta school
A proposed Alberta class action alleges that Indigenous students at a school in Bonnyville, Alta., were subjected to frequent physical, psychological and sexual abuse from September 1966 to June 1974.
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September 25, 2024
Appeal court decision compares ‘believe’ and ‘suspect’
If seeing is believing, is seeing also suspecting? The answer to that question was at the heart of a recent case in the Ontario Superior Court, R. v. Jones, 2024 ONSC 4486. Although the distinction between the words “believe” and “suspect” may seem trivial, it was the basis for the Crown’s winning an appeal and having a new trial ordered.
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September 24, 2024
Ontario opening of the courts ceremony emphasizes technological change, access to justice
Leaders from across Ontario’s legal community met in Toronto for the annual opening of the courts ceremony on Sept. 23, emphasizing the efforts that have been made to modernize the court system while also saying more needs to be done to tackle things such as self-represented litigants and case backlogs.
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September 24, 2024
Definition of arson at heart of Ontario Superior Court decision
Setting fire to property with malicious intent is a serious criminal offence in Canada, commonly associated with the act of an arsonist. If one intentionally or recklessly causes a fire or an explosion, it can lead to an arson charge. The Criminal Code outlines five offences for arson in ss. 433 to 436 (1), including endangering life and setting a fire for fraud. This is a deeply serious offence, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if prosecuted as an indictable offence, underscoring the gravity of the act and the need for strict adherence to the law.
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September 23, 2024
Early election could kill proposed miscarriage of justice review body if bill not soon enacted
With the possibility of an early federal election looming this fall, advocates for the creation of an independent body to investigate suspected wrongful convictions are urging the Senate to move expeditiously to study and pass Bill C-40, proposed government legislation that would give birth to a long-awaited independent review body.
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September 23, 2024
Federal Court rules Ottawa had no duty to consult in funding cut for Francophone jurists group
The Federal Court has ruled that the federal government was not obligated to consult an organization advocating for French-language access to justice before cutting its core funding under an Official Languages Action Plan.
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September 23, 2024
B.C. law society sets 2025 fees, amends policies on administrative penalties at recent meeting
Benchers of the Law Society of British Columbia (LSBC) set fee rates for 2025 at their Sept. 20 meeting while making changes to the regulator’s administrative penalty regime and external appointments policy.
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September 23, 2024
Exemptions to abortion bans: More reasons why they don’t work — police reports | Abby Hafer
In my articles of Sept. 12 and Sept.18, I discussed some severe problems with rape exemptions to abortion bans. These included the fact that they effectively punish women for having sex voluntarily as though that is in some way a crime and that they fail to provide access to abortion to those who qualify, since in states with bans abortion clinics all shut down, so those wishing to exercise the rape exemption cannot get an abortion in state anyway.
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September 23, 2024
Alberta Court of Appeal weighs in on neighbours’ fist fight
“That’s what neighbours do; they help each other …” Aaron Jeremschuk started expressing gratitude to his neighbour, Robert Jakubec, who volunteered to help Jeremschuk hang a heavy boxing bag in his garage.